Alonso Herminio

Alonso Herminio A. is 42 years old. He is married and has 4 children (25 year-old Miguel Angel, 24 year-old Victor Alonso, 22 year-old Johana Alexandra and 14 year-old Kruzkaya Kayetara). He lives in Chillanes canton, in Bolívar province.

Alonso Herminio is a member of the 'Unidos Somos Más' (United We Are Stronger) rural loan group. This new group is located in the community of Matilde Esther, in Guayas province, 2 hours from our Chillanes office in Bolívar province. The group has 23 members who work in different business activities such as farming, livestock raising and running small restaurants and eateries.

Alonso Herminio works in a locksmith's shop. He buys and sells his products in Matilde Esther, Bucay and Milagro. He is requesting this loan to expand his workshop. His dream is to have a metal roof. The biggest challenge he faces in his business is customers not collecting the work he has done on time. His hobbies are watching soccer on television and going out to watch outdoor and indoor soccer matches which take place in the community.

Additional Information

About Cooperativa San Jose

This loan is administered by Cooperativa San Jose, a 45,000-member credit union located high in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador’s poorest province, Bolivar. They offer a unique loan called “Ventanillas Rurales” [Window to the Countryside], which uses a group guarantee but is an individual loan with a savings component, mostly to rural borrowers. Due to low savings rates and a history of macroeconomic instability, many traditional loans in Ecuador demand interest rates that are prohibitively high for some borrowers. There is also a high incidence of extortionist black-market lending in Ecuador. CSJ helps mitigate these problems by providing a less onerous and more appropriate option. Join CSJ’s Lending Team!